Electrolyte Drinks — The Hydration Spectrum

Sub-scores

MLS	How extreme the nutrition label is — flagging high sugar, sodium, saturated fat, and energy-dense sweet formulations.	0–20
MDS	How many core ingredients have been replaced by industrial substitutes (modified starches, hydrogenated fats, HFCS, protein isolates).	0–30
AFS	How many chemical additives are stacked in — emulsifiers, preservatives, artificial colors, flavor enhancers.	0–80
HES	How engineered the sweetener system is — sugar alcohols, non-nutritive sweeteners, and multi-sweetener blending strategies.	0–20
Composite	MDS + AFS + HES + MLS. How far a product has moved from recognizable food.	0–150

Classification tiers

Processing class — derived from composite score
C0	Clean	0
C1	Clean, Minimal Markers	1–5
P1a	Light Processing	6–15
P1b	Moderate-Light Processing	16–25
P2a	Moderate Processing	26–38
P2b	Moderate-Heavy Processing	39–50
P3	Heavy Industrial Formulation	51–75
P4	Ultra-Formulated	76+

Metabolic class — derived from MLS
N0	No Metabolic Load	0
N0+	Minimal	1–3
N1a	Low	4–6
N1b	Low-Moderate	7–8
N2	Moderate	9–14
N3	High	15+

Ingredient detail

Drink	Ingredients	Class	What FIS Detected
LMNT Sparkling Orange	Sparkling water, salt (sodium chloride), citric acid, natural orange flavor, magnesium malate, potassium chloride, stevia leaf extract	Clean, Minimal Markers	Water + electrolyte salts + stevia — minimal formulation
BODYARMOR Fruit Punch 16oz	Filtered water, cane sugar, coconut water concentrate, citric acid, electrolyte blend (dipotassium phosphate, magnesium oxide, zinc oxide), fruit and vegetable juice (color), vitamins (niacinamide, D-calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, alpha-tocopheryl acetate, retinyl palmitate), natural flavors	Moderate-Light Processing	Coconut water base but 25g sugar — sport drink calories with natural branding
Prime Hydration Blue Chill	Water, coconut water concentrate, citric acid, dipotassium phosphate, trimagnesium citrate, L-isoleucine, L-leucine, L-valine, sucralose, gum arabic, acesulfame potassium, natural flavors, ester gum, retinyl palmitate, D-alpha-tocopheryl acetate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, cyanocobalamin	Moderate Processing	3 Tier A hits: two NNS + natural flavor, plus BCAAs and gum arabic
Gatorade Lemon Lime	Water, sugar, dextrose, citric acid, salt, sodium citrate, monopotassium phosphate, gum arabic, glycerol ester of rosin, natural flavor, yellow 5	Moderate Processing	Yellow 5 (artificial color) + dextrose + gum arabic — the 1965 formula, barely changed
Liquid I.V. Strawberry Lemonade	Cane sugar, dextrose, citric acid, salt, potassium citrate, sodium citrate, dipotassium phosphate, silicon dioxide, vitamin C (ascorbic acid), stevia leaf extract, natural flavors, B vitamins (niacin, B5, B6, B12)	Moderate-Heavy Processing	4 Tier B hits (silicon dioxide, phosphate, two citrates) + sugar/dextrose drive MLS to 13
Propel Grape Powder	Citric acid, maltodextrin, sodium citrate, salt, monopotassium phosphate, modified food starch, sucralose, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), silicon dioxide, vitamin E acetate, niacinamide (vitamin B3), acesulfame potassium, calcium pantothenate (vitamin B5), calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor), pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), natural flavor, cyanocobalamin (vitamin B12)	Heavy Industrial Formulation	Maltodextrin + modified food starch drive MDS=8; dual NNS + EDTA push AFS to 35
Pedialyte Sport Fruit Punch	Water, dextrose; less than 1% of: galactooligosaccharides, salt, potassium citrate, citric acid, potassium phosphate, natural and artificial flavors, magnesium chloride, sodium citrate, sucralose, acesulfame potassium, and blue 1	Heavy Industrial Formulation	4 Tier A hits: blue 1, artificial flavor, 2 NNS — medical-grade formulation

Analysis

Seven electrolyte drinks, scores 4 to 62. They all promise the same thing — hydration — but the ingredient lists range from salt water to a synthetic cocktail of artificial colors, dual NNS systems, and industrial emulsifiers.

Key Takeaways

LMNT (4) is the baseline: sparkling water, salt, citric acid, stevia. Seven ingredients, one Tier C hit. The electrolytes come from mineral salts, not industrial phosphates.
BODYARMOR (23) uses coconut water as its base but packs 25 g of cane sugar per bottle. The “natural” branding masks a sugar load that rivals Gatorade.
Prime Hydration (32) has zero sugar but 3 Tier A hits: sucralose, acesulfame K, and natural flavor. Dipotassium phosphate (Tier B) and gum arabic add further formulation layers. AFS = 29 drives most of the score.
Gatorade (34) is the original — sugar + dextrose for energy, Yellow 5 for color, gum arabic for mouthfeel. The 1965 formula, barely changed. MDS = 3 from dextrose; Yellow 5 is the only artificial color in this lineup until Pedialyte.
Liquid I.V. (49) is the surprise: marketed as premium hydration, it scores highest on MLS (13) because it’s a powder that concentrates sugar + dextrose + 500 mg sodium into one stick. Silicon dioxide (anti-caking) and four Tier B salts (two citrates, phosphate, silicon dioxide) push AFS.
Propel (52) is Gatorade’s zero-calorie sibling — same parent company, very different formula. Maltodextrin + modified food starch replace sugar (MDS = 8, highest here), while sucralose + acesulfame K provide sweetness. Calcium disodium EDTA (a chelating agent) is a rare Tier A ingredient that few consumers would recognize.
Pedialyte Sport (62) is the extreme: 4 Tier A hits including Blue 1 and artificial flavor. Designed for clinical rehydration, it uses dual NNS (sucralose + acesulfame K) and scores like a heavily processed food despite having only 30 calories.

The Hydration Trade-off

The scatter chart reveals two clusters: BODYARMOR and Gatorade deliver sodium through sugar-heavy formulas (21–25 g); LMNT, Liquid I.V., and Pedialyte deliver high sodium (490–500 mg) with minimal sugar. Processing fills the gap.
AFS dominates this category: every product except LMNT has AFS as its largest sub-score. Electrolyte drinks are essentially additive-delivery systems — phosphate salts, gum stabilizers, NNS, and colors.
Prime and Pedialyte both use sucralose + acesulfame K, but Pedialyte adds Blue 1 and artificial flavor — pushing AFS from 29 to 42 and composite from 32 to 62.
The “cleanest” high-sodium option is LMNT (500 mg, score 4). The next high-sodium option, Pedialyte (490 mg), scores 15× higher. Same electrolytes, radically different formulation.